Poems From the Past
by PleasantlyHellinistic
Summary: Nick and Judy have just solved one of the largest cases in Zootopia history. Causing massive changes in Zootopia as a result. Just as Nick thinks his life is finally stabilizing, a shadow from Nick's past comes in the form of a letter, launching the two into a darker part of Zootopia they never thought existed.
1. Chapter 1: A New Start

"Aghh, my head" groaned Nick as he groggily opened his eyes.

Immediately Nick was met with a familiar, run down wooden floor that he swore he'd seen before.

A soft pillow greeted his head and a surprisingly warm blanket responded to his body as he returned to reality.

"_Oh yeah, I'm at Fluff's apartment" _Nick said to himself as he pieced together what had happened the day prior while looking up at Judy's alarm clock stating that it was 11 in the morning.

One week had passed since the case was solved by Nick and Judy, as a result the great city of Zootopia was going through some major changes. Many elected members of public offices that were in good relations with Bellwether had been found to be as equally corrupt if not more than Bellwether, either being impeached or imprisoned as a result. This shift in power also caused several other corrupt plans from the government fronted by Bellwether were discovered after the night howler case to be blown wide open. Many media outlets were calling this "The Political Purge", and with good reason too. Over eighty elected officials had lost their jobs in the past week, emergency elections had to take place and many Zootopian citizens found themselves leaving the voting centers with sore writing hands.

"_Wow, Carrots and I really made a mark, didn't we?" _Nick thought. _"But not as much as the mark we made on our livers". _

After the precinct thankfully took care all of the paperwork and publicity jargon, several of the officers that worked with Judy insisted that they go to the bar on a Saturday night to celebrate as these were some of the biggest solved cases in over twenty years for the precinct. Not being one to back down from a good time, Nick happily agreed to this offer, dragging Judy along much to her hesitation. However, after arriving at the bar, Nick and Judy soon realized how much smaller they were compared to the other officers that accompanied them. Basic biology can really leave some to a disadvantage in Zootopia and drinking certainly proved to be that for mammals like Nick and Judy.

The last thing Nick remembered was slamming down an unknown pint of Clawweiser while being cheered on by Fangmeyer and Wolford.

"_Hah, those guys really know how to handle their drinks." _Nick chuckled, "_If only I was their size, then they'd see what years on the streets can do for you in the bars." _

Nick suddenly realized that he was on the floor. Frantically looking up, he saw a pair of familiar ears poking out of a pile of blankets and stuffed animals.

"There's my favorite bunny!" Exclaimed Nick in an almost mocking tone, hoping to get a similar response from the motionless Judy.

"Urrrrphhhh" responded the lump of blankets on the bed.

"Aww come on Fluff, I thought you were a morning person?" Nick replied.

In response, a bloodshot pair of dark purple eyes greeted him. However, these pair of eyes were not filled with optimism like normal, they were filled with regret and pain.

"Only when I don't have a headache that feels like knives stabbing every inch of my fucking brain" Judy groaned in response.

"Wow Carrots, I didn't know that you had the capability of such language!" Nick said in a surprising tone. He really was surprised, Nick had rarely heard Judy use any profanity, especially compared to a street ruffian like him.

"Well I suppose you learn something new every day, like how you shouldn't go to the bars on a Saturday night with a sly fox like you and rowdy coworkers even when they beg you to." Judy replied, the harshness in her voice changing to a more playful tone. "Plus, the doctors said I shouldn't be doing anything crazy with my leg after the stitches."

"I think only a dumb injured bunny would accept that offer, don't you?" Nick retorted back with a confident look in his eyes. "Plus, from what I remember, you were the rowdiest one there!"

Rolling her eyes, Judy didn't deny the accusation from the fox. She wasn't the most experienced in drinking, and she was notorious for being hard to stop once she got going. A stubborn personality like hers would interfere with anything in that sort.

The last thing Judy remembered was dancing on a table while her favorite Fur Fighters song played in the bar. Nick and her coworkers dancing along on the floor in a drunken stupor.

"How is your leg doing, may I ask?" Nick asked, concerned that she could have torn some of the stitches in her leg while drunk last night.

"It's doing great, much better than my liver is probably." Judy responded as she slowly sat up in bed.

"That's good, especially considering all the dancing you did last night." Nick teased.

"Oh please, you and the others weren't much better than I was. Speaking of the others, I wonder if those party animals got back home safe" Judy exclaimed as she pulled out her phone. Her question immediately answered by a text from Wolford greeting her from earlier.

_Hey Hopps, you and Nick were a riot last night! Although I'd suggest going a little easier next time. Since Fangmeyer and I had to carry you both to your apartment. We didn't know where Wilde lives so we just dropped him off at your place. Again, great job on that night howler case! Hope we can have another great night of celebration soon. _

_Also, Nick's application to the precinct got accepted. Just a heads up._

A smile immediately formed on Judy's face after reading the last text.

"Nick! Guess what!" Shouted Judy.

"Did I finally win the lottery?" Nick replied cluelessly.

"No, silly! Your application to the precinct got accepted!" Judy responded.

Shock suddenly washed over Nick's as a realization set in.

_"I got accepted?" _Nick said to himself in disbelief. His face of surprise, however, quickly changed to a face of confidence, as he didn't want the bunny to see that her news had got to him.

"Well isn't that a surprise?" Nick exclaimed returning to his usual sarcastic personality, "what precinct wouldn't want a handsome devil like me in their ranks?"

"It's no surprise at all Nick! You helped me crack one of the biggest cases in Zootopia history, what precinct wouldn't want someone with that level of an accomplishment?" Judy responded.

"I suppose you're right, Carrots." Nick retorted, still hiding his genuine surprise. While Nick was certainly interested in becoming a police officer, especially after the ride-along on steroids that he endured with the rabbit, he was still disheartened what his background would look like on a resumé. What company, let alone a police precinct, would want a former con-mammal? Especially a _fox _con-mammal. Nick always felt embarrassed at how cliché he was at making a living, adopting all the stereotypes of his species to swindle daily passerby.

"So Carrots, what happens next now that I've been accepted?" Nick asked.

"Well you should be getting a letter in the mail informing you that you've been accepted," replied Judy, "With that there should be instructions on when you will be starting at the academy."

"And how long does this academy go for?" Nick asked with a curious tone.

"About 6 months, give or take." Judy answered.

"Lovely, I guess police officers here do need to be trained for multiple environments and situations." Nick said with a slightly nervous tone. He hadn't been outside of Zootopia in years, let alone in a boot camp environment for months at a time.

"Well Slick, I'd guess that your piece of mail should already be delivered considering you filed your application a week ago." Judy exclaimed to take the unease off the fox's mind. "Why don't you and I go pick it up today?"

"Uhm, about that." Nick said nervously.

"What's the matter Slick?" Judy said with a concerned tone, slightly cocking her head to the side.

"My mail used to get sent to a P.O. Box for a while, but they found out that I was using a fake address connected to it, so they terminated it." Nick replied. "So, I was given no choice but to put my mailing address on the application as a residential address."

"What's wrong with that, Nick?" insisted Judy, "I thought you lived in an apartment like me?"

A tinge of embarrassment reflected across Nick's face for just a moment before returning to a neutral expression. Immediately Judy knew what that statement meant to him and guilt arose within her.

"Not exactly, Carrots." Nick replied with a reassuring tone, seeing the sorrowful look on the bunny's face. "But that's a story for another time."

"I put the mailing address as the one belonging to the only anchor I've had in my life for all of these years."

"Who's that?" Judy asked.

"That lovely mammal," cooed Nick with a hint of humor, "would be my mom."

* * *

**Welp, here's my first written FanFic in about 3 years. I thought i'd start fresh with a clean slate so here I am. **

**Feedback, both positive and negative, is very much appreciated!**

**These first couple of chapters will serve as a prologue/buildup. After that the plot will begin turning its gears. **

**Enjoy!**

**PleasantlyHellinistic**


	2. Chapter 2: An Anchor in a Stormy Sea

After recovering their thoughts and curing their hangovers to the best of their abilities. Nick and Judy left the aging apartment complex for Nick's mom's apartment, slowly walking down the sidewalk enjoying each other's company.

"Where exactly does your mom live?" Judy asked.

"She's about a thirty-minute walk from here, in the northern part of central." Nick responded.

A silence then broke out between the two as they walked for several minutes, Nick acting like he wanted to say something but didn't have the courage to start. Fortunately for him, Judy knew exactly what to ask.

"So Slick, I've haven't heard much about your mom, tell me more about her, if that's okay of course." Judy asked. She was genuinely curious about Nick's past, the fox never talked much about it. She could tell that it involved lots of pain and regret, but the few times Nick had mentioned his mom he always had a warm expression on his face. It was obvious to Judy that Nick's mom meant a great deal to him, and that she was one of the few people of his past that he had positive memories with.

"Well, to begin her name's Marion." Nick answered.

"Huh, like from the- "Judy began.

"Yeah like Maid Marion from the Robin Hood stories." Nick chuckled, finishing Judy's sentence before she could complete it. "Although she's never had her Robin as long as I've known her." "My dad left when I was just a kit, I think his name was John. That's about all I remember about him. After he left my mom was burdened with being a single parent, she worked three jobs to make ends meet for us when I was a kid." Nick continued, "by the time I turned twelve, I decided I wanted to help out my mom in any way possible."

"And that's where you started hustling?" Judy asked.

"Correct." Nick answered. "I didn't want the weight of the world to be all in my mother's hands, so I did what I could to help her out." "I've never let her know how I've made the money all these years though; I doubt she would be happy hearing that her only child made a living through conning."

"Nick, I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that when you were so young. I can't believe your father up and left your family like that, leaving your poor mom broken. Why would he do such a thing?" asked Judy in a disgusted tone.

"Beats me, mom's barely talked about him. Every time I've tried to bring him up in conversation, she'd either get very upset or very sad, so I learned to drop the questions. All I know is that my mom was heartbroken and was never the same after he left. Sure, she's always been a kindhearted and loving mammal as long as I've known her. But according to those who knew her before my father left, she was apparently a lovely artist and had quite the knack for singing." Nick chuckled, "Mom always said to me to 'play with the cards you're dealt', I think that phrase explains her headstrong personality the best. She always was my anchor in life."

"Well she certainly sounds like a wonderful fox," Judy smiled. "I'm looking forward to meeting her."

"Look no further Carrots, because we're here." Nick said with a greeting tone.

Laid before them was an average looking apartment complex, about eight stories tall. A small sign by the entrance walkway read 'Badger's Paw Apartments'. The front grounds looked rather well kempt, especially compared to Judy's less than luxury apartment complex. Nick confidently led Judy through the front door of the red brick apartment building. Upon entering the complex, an elderly looking badger searching for his keys was attempting to enter a room with the word 'Landlord' on the door. Upon noticing them enter, the badger immediately smiled when he saw Nick.

"Well hey there Nick! It's been a few months, here to see Marion again?" the badger said with a warm smile, almost the way a grandfather would talk to his grandson.

"Good morning Mr. Badgersson, yes I'm here to see Mom. It's good to see you again, how've the tenants been treating you?" Nick asked in an equally warm tone.

"Oh, you know, the long-term tenants like your mother have been nothing but great, other than the occasional party animals that pop up from time to time it's been wonderful." Mr. Badgersson replied. "And who might this lovely doe accompanying you be?"

"Judy Hopps sir, pleasure to meet you!" responded Judy before Nick had the chance to answer, she always loved talking and interacting with elderly mammals. She loved the immense knowledge and stories that they carried, as well as the unique sense of humor that they possessed as well.

"It's my pleasure to meet you as well young lady, I hear you finally managed to get Nick here on the straight and narrow. I never thought I'd hear the day!" said Mr. Badgersson in a teasing manner towards Nick.

"Hey now, everyone thought you'd hustle until the day you'd die, and then who got you on the straight and narrow? Oh, right, that was me." Nick retorted in his signature confident manner.

Laughter erupted between the two as they reminisced, and Judy couldn't help but join in as the two were quite contagious.

"Well, I best be getting back to finding my dammed key, I really need to organize this keychain someday," sighed Mr. Badgersson, "tell Marion hi for me."

"In case you were wondering, Badgersson was also a hustler like me." Said Nick as he and Judy began climbing the stairs of the building. "Although he was on the streets for a while even when I first started hustling."

"How'd you help him into a better life like you mentioned before?" Asked Judy.

"Believe it or not, I won this building in a game of cards from a real estate mogul." Replied Nick. "It took a bit of convincing as well as some mild blackmail for him to actually hand over the deed to the place, but it happened."

"Nick! I can't believe you'd take such a risk in a game of cards; I don't even want to know what his gain was if he won." Judy gasped.

"Oh trust me Fluff, you don't want to know. Just know that I won and that we're here now." Nick affirmed. "Anyways, since I suddenly had a whole apartment building to worry about that I realized I didn't really want after I got the damn thing, I realized Badgersson had always talked about getting out of the hustling business, although he always said he felt trapped and couldn't escape."

"That sounds like someone familiar." Said Judy as she looked at the fox.

"Yeah, yeah," grumbled Nick. "Well I decided all Badgersson needed was some purpose in life, so I decided to hand the deed over to him, in a perfectly legal manner must I add, and I told him to do whatever with the place under two conditions: give my mom a good place to live, and to never tell my mom about what I was doing for a living. And here we are about eight years later."

"Wow Slick, never thought you had that level of kindness in you." Sassed Judy.

"Hey now, not everything I did was bad okay?" Retorted Nick. "Anyways, this is our floor. Lucky number seven."

Judy and Nick entered through the door to the seventh floor and only walked a few doors down to a door marked 7303. Nick then gave a look down to Judy and raised his eyebrows in an excited manner while knocking on the door three times.

"Coming!" A kind female voice responded from the other side of the door as quick pawsteps approached the door.

The door flew open and immediately a squeal of excitement greeted the pair.

"Nicky!" cooed the vixen as she flung her arms around her son. "Oh, it's been too long since I've seen you!"

"Ah come on mom, it's only been a couple of months. That's not too long in the grand scheme of things if you think about it." Replied Nick in a playful manner.

"It's way too long for a mom of not seeing her boy, and you know it!" Marion retorted in a scolding, yet loving, manner. Marion then turned her attention down to the bunny accompanying Nick, "And if this isn't Officer Judy Hopps? It's so nice to meet you! I heard about what you two did on the news, I'm so proud of you two! You'll have to tell me everything"

Upon getting a better look at Marion, Judy noticed that she was a few inches shorter than Nick. Her fur was the exact same color as Nick's, but her eyes were a very icy blue compared to Nick's green eyes. What shocked Judy the most was how young Marion looked. She had to at least be in her fifties, but she didn't look much older than Nick at all. Marion also had a much slimmer face than Nick's, yet she shared many of his similarities in terms of complexion.

"Well don't just stand there! Come on in! We have so much to talk about" Marion hummed as she gestured the two into her apartment.

The first thing Judy noticed as she entered the apartment was not only how clean it was, but also how cozy it was too. The floor consisted of dark oak wood and the walls were painted a warm beige color. Each piece of furniture in the apartment was greeted with a very well knitted blanket and several bookshelves filled with books were against the walls in the living room. The lighting of the apartment was even a dimmer shade than most apartments and the little tables by each of the two chairs on either side of the couch filled the empty space between them perfectly. Judy almost wanted to curl up on one of the chairs and dive right into one of the countless books that Marion had in her possession.

Marion immediately made a beeline for the kitchen taking teacups and saucers out of a cabinet, she then focused her attention on an electric kettle, flipping the switch on it to boil the water.

"Would any of you like some tea?" Marion hummed with a warm tone to her voice.

"Yes please!" Judy responded enthusiastically as she took a seat on the soft couch. She couldn't say no to the vixen, who seemed happy to be providing any level of comfort to her guests.

"_Marion is so nice; I can see why Nick cares so much for her." _Judy thought to herself.

Meanwhile Nick made himself comfortable on one of the chairs adjacent to Judy on the couch, lazily daydreaming as he observed the décor in the apartment.

"So, you two, tell me more about the big case you solved together!" Marion asked as she gingerly carried three teacups and a pot of tea into the living room.

"Well, it's a funny story. There I was, just leaving work for the day when suddenly this crazy bunny comes out of nowhere. Stating that I have evidence on a lead for a missing mammal case she was investigating." Nick began. "Of course, I tried to squirm my way out of it since I didn't know what the hell she was talking about, but she couldn't be convinced otherwise. So I decided to go along with it, and here we are!"

"You did leave out a large amount of details, Slick. But that is a good elevator speech if I do say so myself," Judy chuckled. "For example, you did leave out all of the whining you did while we solved the case, plus the many times you were screaming like an injured goat." Teased Judy as she turned to Marion, prompting a laugh out of the vixen.

"Oh I can definitely see that, Nicky has always been the dramatic type deep down." Marion giggled, furthering the teasing attack upon Nick.

"Well now I see how it is, gaining up on a poor helpless fox I see?" Nick said sarcastically as he placed a paw over his head in a dramatic fashion. "After all we've been through Carrots, and you've already turned my mom against me."

"Well I can certainly tell you two have already been through a lot together, when you two had that falling out that Nick told me about for example, I could tell he had a deep hole in his heart about the ordeal, he was very sad for those three months," Marion smirked, "In fact, if I didn't know any better I'd say you two care a greeaaat deal about one another."

"Mom!" Nick spluttered, covering his face with a paw. He should've known this would happen, his mom has never had much of a filter when it comes to conversation, especially when she had the opportunity to embarrass her son.

Judy receded into the couch while sipping her tea, trying to hide the fact that she was blushing.

"Oh I'm just teasing Nicky," Marion continued, "besides I have no problem with interspecies relationships. I'm not afraid to admit I've dabbled in a little bit of- "

"DAMMIT MOM!" Nick yipped, stopping his mom from saying something he or Judy certainly did not want to hear. "Let's change the subject, there's something else I'd like to tell you about."

"What is it, Nicky?" Marion asked with a curious look on her face.

"Well, after this whole saving the city ordeal, I figured I'd test my luck and send in an application to the ZPD," Nick replied. "And according to one of Judy's coworkers my application got accepted, my letter stating when I go to the academy should have arrived in the mail here."

A face of pure shock and excitement graced Marion's face. Emitting nothing but a squeal of joy as she embraced her son in a hug, practically leaping over the table separating the two from across the room.

"Oh Nicky! My boy is going to be a police officer! I can't believe it! I think I remember seeing a piece of mail with your name on it, I'll go grab it for you." Marion shouted in excitement as she hustled to the kitchen like a moving ball of renowned energy. "Ah, here it is! I didn't even notice the ZPD crest on it." Marion exclaimed as she brought the letter over to Nick.

Upon seeing the letter in his paws, a twinge of nervousness arose inside of Nick. He never thought in all his life he'd be holding this letter. He always thought he'd spend the rest of his days miserable in the streets, hustling countless hours a day just to make a living. Never in a million years did he think he'd have a respectable job, let alone a police officer.

"Well, here goes nothing." Nick said as he carefully opened the letter, Judy and Marion eagerly huddled around him.

_Congratulations Mr. Wilde,_

_You have officially been accepted to the first precinct of the Zootopia Police Department. Out of five hundred applicants, you were one of fifty chosen to arrive at the police academy one week from the posted date. Please arrive at the academy the day of no later that 8:00 AM. _

_Again, congratulations and it is my pleasure to formally accept you into the first precinct._

_Chief Bogo. _

Nick saw that the date posted on the letter was yesterday, therefore he had six days until he had to arrive at the academy.

"Welp, looks like I'm going back to school in six days!" Nick exclaimed.

Judy and Marion both immediately embraced Nick in a hug to show how proud they were of him.

"Wow, one second you two want to tease me until I shrivel up into a husk of embarrassment, and the next you two want to smother me to death with hugs. Make up your mind ladies!" Nick chuckled as he returned the hug.

Nick hadn't felt this level of happiness in years, he was finally free of the soul sucking profession he did for a living, he was surrounded by people he truly cared about, and he was finally going to make the world a better place each and every day. Life couldn't be better for this fox.

"Uhm, Nicky, Judy?" Marion chimed in with a concerned look on her face, "I hate to ruin the moment, but there's something I'd also like to tell you two about."

Nick had rarely seen this level of concern from his mom before, she was usually very carefree and easy going. He knew that she had something serious to say.

"Is everything okay, Mom?" Nick replied with an equal amount of concern as the three sat down.

"Well, since Judy here is officially a police officer and Nick is on his way to being one, there's something I'd like you two to help me with." Marion said with a serious look on her face.

"What is it? Is someone harassing you? Are you in danger?" Nick growled, a sudden bout of anger shooting through his body.

"No Nick, I'm quite fine," Marion responded calmly, easing the worry from her son. "It's about your father, Nick."

A cold chill ran down Nick's spine, he hadn't heard his mom mention anything about his father in well over ten years. He'd never heard her even mention him without tears or anger in her voice. Now she was mentioning him in a cool and collected manner.

"What about him?" Nick whispered.

"For all these years I thought he had left you and I, I blamed myself for everything on why he left. Believing it was my fault and that I had driven him away." Marion spoke. "That was, until I got a letter in the mail a few days ago."

"Nick, your father didn't leave us. He was taken from us."


	3. Chapter 3: Seeking Answers

A tsunami of emotions slammed Nick as if he were a ragdoll, everything he thought he knew about his past had just been changed with one sentence.

"Wha-?" Nick breathed with a shocked tone to his voice.

"I know it's hard to believe," Marion spoke as tears slowly began rolling down her face, "the letter was from an unaddressed sender. Normally I would've immediately had suspicions but the handwriting on the front of the envelope with my address looked strangely familiar." Marion took a moment to regain her composure before she continued, "I opened the envelope and all that was in it was a piece of notebook paper with some writing on it."

"What did it say?" Judy pressed, her cop instincts immediately kicking in, thinking it was a ransom note or worse.

"It was a poem, a limerick to be exact." Marion answered, "read it for yourself."

Marion reached into her front pocket of her jacket, pulling out a neatly folded piece of notebook paper. She then handed it to the pair on her couch.

Nick gently took the paper, as if it were a fragile artifact from ancient history, and slowly opened it. Greeting the pair was some neat, yet seemingly rushed, handwriting.

_Within these eyes of sorrow and pain_

_You'll find a mammal without a name_

_In The Willow_

_Please bring a billow_

_Seek the ones who paid my flame. _

"How the hell do you know this is from John?" Nick asked with a confused expression. A multitude of emotions overcoming him.

"It's his handwriting Nick, I know it." Marion responded meekly, holding back tears. "That and your father absolutely loved poetry, Nick. He would write a poem a day for years, poems that I still read from time to time for comfort."

"Poems?" Nick asked, receiving more questions than answers.

"Yes, they were a hobby and coping mechanism of his" Marion replied fondly, "I'd guess he wrote hundreds of them while I knew him, they were mainly him writing about what happened that day."

"Why didn't you ever tell me about this? About John?" Nick snapped with an accusing tone, tears welling up in his eyes. "Fuck, I barely even know his name, let alone some fucking literature fantasy he had. And now suddenly I'm learning everything about him, you may as well tell me that he was in a sacrificial cult or something."

"I'm so sorry Nicky, I've wanted to tell you more about your father" Marion bowed her head, tears streaming down her face as she sobbed. "After he was gone, I lost my other half, I didn't know what to do for years. I had so much resentment for John, for myself, and for my life. I was so focused on myself that I never focused on the only good part of my life, you. I was so selfish for doing that to you, and I'm so sorry." Marion began sobbing.

Seeing his mother in pain brought Nick back to reality, while his mom did make a big mistake revealing little to nothing about his father his whole life, she was a very caring and hardworking parent that thought the world of her son. Nick was always grateful that he had his mother there for him all those years, and he understood that some individuals handle great pain different than others. His mother just happened to be one that coped by bottling things up, a trait Nick realized that he must've inherited from her.

"Mom, don't beat yourself up too much. You've been wonderful all of these years. I don't know what I would do without you." Nick embraced his mom in a hug, holding back tears so that his mom wouldn't cry more.

While Nick and Marion were discussing past mistakes and tribulations, Judy was entranced in reading the poem for what must've been the 10th time.

_"This isn't just some random poem" _Judy pondered to herself, "_This is a clue, a call for help._"

Judy continued dissecting the writing, analyzing every possible meaning to each sentence. This poem couldn't be a shallow writing without meaning, it was sent to Marion for a reason. And Judy had to find out what it meant if it was the last thing she did.

"I really hate to barge in on this, but I think I figured something out with this poem." Judy quietly chimed in, feeling guilty for putting the emotional discussion between the foxes on hiatus. "It's obvious that whoever wrote this is giving a location to somewhere. Where that is I'm not sure."

"That's what I think it's for too" Marion replied as she wiped tears from her face. "And that's why I believe he's being held captive somewhere, he wouldn't send a poem like that if he was calling for help, why he took thirty years to do it though is beyond me."

"Maybe whoever or whatever took him has been harsh on him for that time, he could've just barely found an opportunity to send it" Judy hypothesized.

"That, or years ago he purposely made it so that it would send at this point in time." Nick remarked quietly, still processing what was occurring.

"That's also a possibility, nice thinking Slick." Judy chirped. She felt bad for the fox, this overload of information would be hard for any mammal to digest.

"Thanks Carrots." Nick smiled, the compliment from Judy giving a release from his catatonic state of emotions. "But, as curious as I am to look more into this, I think it would be best if we wait until I've graduated from the academy. By that time we could get some help from the ZPD, and it would make plenty of time for gathering as many leads and evidence as possible."

"Good point Slick, I'll try my best to look through records at ZPD and find as much information about John as I can while you're at the academy" Judy added. "Plus, some other detectives and I could try a hand at cracking the meanings behind this poem." "There's just one problem with that."

"What would that be Judy?" Marion asked enthusiastically, seeing the two so eager to work on finding her husband brought her a level of excitement she hadn't felt in years.

"Chief Bogo," Judy responded with a slight tone of frustration "getting him to approve a case like this would be difficult. It's been about thirty years since anyone to our knowledge has seen or heard a trace from John. This poem is our only lead on any existence of him, and we don't even know one hundred percent that this is actually from him." "Bogo would most certainly be hesitant to spend resources on a case like this, I think the best way we could convince him to help would be if we got more evidence."

"So, you're implying you and I work on this alone for the time being?" Nick asked, a tone of confidence to his voice.

"Correct, Slick" Judy smirked, and equal amount of confidence in her voice. "Although I say we wait until you're back from the academy, during this I can visit with Marion and her and I can crack this poem together. As well as getting more information about him." Judy looked over at Marion with a smile.

"Yay!" exulted Marion, "I would love to help in any way I can."

While Nick loved seeing Judy and his mom so eager to work together, he couldn't help but feel sad that he would be left out while he was away at the academy. He wasn't even that concerned with finding his dad. Sure, this clue that his dad may still be alive meant a lot to his mom, but Nick knew little to nothing about him and he had almost non-existent feelings for him. Nick couldn't shake the feeling that this all had a much larger undertone and meaning than finding a lost fox. There was something different about this, yet Nick couldn't place his tongue on what it was, and he wanted to be there to help Judy and his mom and make sure they would be okay in any way possible.

"Now you two don't uncover anything too big while I'm gone," Nick chimed in, "we don't want you two getting in big trouble without me, you know I can't miss out on being a part of trouble."

"Don't worry Slick, I'll keep you updated on what we find while you're at the academy." Judy reassured the fox, calming his concern. "Plus, you still have six days until you leave, that gives us plenty of time to look into this while you're here."

"I guess you're right Carrots, we still have a few days until then." Said Nick, the bunny did have a point. Six days is a long time to find more information.

As Nick's worries were slightly lessened, he glanced at the clock on the wall. "Well would you look at that, it's already nighttime!" Nick exclaimed.

"Oh my goodness, you're right!" Marion gasped, seeing that it was 10:30 at night. "You two kids better get going, although you both are more than welcome to stay here."

"I think we're okay mom, thanks though" Nick replied. "We'll be back soon to help and with more questions that only you would probably know."

"Okay Nicky, thank you so much for visiting and hearing me out" Marion said with a kind smile, "and Judy, it was so nice meeting you. Thank you for wanting to help find my husband."

"Of course, Mrs. Wilde. I'm always willing to make the world a better place." Judy replied with an equally warm smile as her and Nick walked into the hallway.

"Oh please, call me Marion, the term Mrs. Wilde makes me feel old." Marion chuckled as she winked, reminding Judy where Nick got his sarcasm from. "Now you two don't get yourselves into too much trouble."

Nick and Judy both chuckled as they began walking down the floor stairs to leave the apartment building.

"So Carrots, you think you've found anything regarding that poem?" Nick asked Judy with a raised eyebrow.

"Not exactly Slick, since I know nothing about your father and what he did and you're not much better off, we need more information on who he was to get a better understanding" Judy responded.

"You're right, we should've asked my mom some more questions about him," Nick said. "Although it is pretty late and it was obvious she was pretty emotionally spent for the day, so it's probably best we wait for another time."

The night was a quiet and clear one as Nick and Judy exited the building and slowly walked down the sidewalk, little to no activity was out on the streets and the night sky was clear with the stars twinkling in their beautiful constellations. Nick caught himself gazing at the stars and he and Judy found themselves in a comfortable silence. While Nick hated not having a stable place to sleep, he always found enjoyment out of looking at the stars before he went to sleep under the bridge. They brought him a strange sense of affirmation and peace, because he knew no matter what the stars would be where they were the night before.

"Hey Slick?" Judy asked quietly, breaking Nick from his trance.

"What's up Carrots?" Nick responded in a calm manner.

"So I've been thinking, since it's kinda cold out tonight, I would, y-know, hate it if you had to sleep out in the cold and all. Especially after the emotional day that you just had. So would, um, you maybe like to stay at my place again?" Judy asked Nick with a nervous smile.

Seeing Judy this flustered so suddenly amused Nick. He rarely saw her act like this, she was usually super confident and well spoken.

"Hmm, I don't know Fluff, you seem to be pretty nervous about a handsome fellow like me spending the night. Are you sure you could handle it?" Nick teased, knowing it would get a reaction out of the rabbit.

"Ugh, no! I don't mean it like that!" Judy stammered nervously as she covered her face in embarrassment. "I just don't want you to be alone after you had so much turmoil today."

Nick suddenly felt a weird feeling in his chest after seeing Judy act so flustered about asking him to spend the night. It was a feeling of great care and concern for the rabbit, one he rarely felt towards any mammal.

"_Why am I feeling like this?" _Nick thought to himself, suddenly finding himself slightly flustered as well. "_Judy's my friend, why would my mind go there if she asked me to spend the night?" _

The pair suddenly found themselves at the entrance to Judy's apartment building, a cold breeze began to kick up as the two stared at the building.

"Well Carrots, I deeply appreciate your offer. Thank you." Nick said. "I would love to spend the night at your place, it is quite chilly tonight." Nick then over exaggerated being cold as he rubbed his arms in a dramatic fashion.

Judy simply responded with a smile as she nodded her head. "Good choice Slick, although I'm afraid you're still gonna have to sleep on the floor. My bed would be pretty crammed for a fat fox like yourself." Judy winked at Nick sarcastically.

"Darn, I was really looking forward to that bed. It does look quite cozy!" Nick joked as he patted Judy's head.

"Oh quiet, you better not complain too much or I'll gladly kick you out!" Judy giggled as she gave Nick a soft punch on the arm.

The pair then walked into the apartment building as they joked further with one another, temporarily forgetting the upcoming stress and turmoil that introduced itself to them that day.

As the pair walked into the building, a figure dressed in a coat on a bench across the street curiously watched them. The fox and the rabbit looked familiar, although they couldn't put a name on them. However, they were told to scope out this area for a rabbit and a fox. And one doesn't see many rabbits and foxes enjoying each other's company. The figure pulled out a phone and dialed a number.

"Hey boss, I think I found who you're looking for. Need more information though, I'll keep you posted." The figure spoke quietly into the phone.

"Good, keep laying low for now, don't make yourself known until I say so." A voice responded from the other end. "We wouldn't want too much attention on us for the moment."

"You got it." The figure hung up the phone and stood up from the bench, sighing a breath of relief as they casually walked down the road, gazing at the beautiful night sky.

* * *

**Hey all, here's chapter 3! **

**I'm making it a goal to post at least one chapter a week for this story. If i'm feeling especially creative or find myself with more time I'll post two a week. But for the time being I'm shooting for one a week.**

**Also I've changed the title for the story, I think this new one fits the theme of the story much better.**

**Enjoy!**

**PleasantlyHellinistic **


	4. Chapter 4: Departure

Five days had passed since Nick and Judy received that fateful letter, and little to no progress had been made on the meaning behind it. Despite Judy and Nick visiting Marion three out of those five days, they couldn't find any big leads on the poem. That was the least of Nick's concerns, however, as he was due to leave for the academy in one day.

The fox felt a combination of emotions, a part of him felt excited while another part felt nervous. It'd been a while since he'd had something this big in his life, so it made sense that he was having some troubles hiding these emotions. Nick currently found himself alone on a park bench in the central district of Zootopia while Judy was at work, it was a sunny and pleasant day, perfect for Nick to reflect on where he was in life and whether or not he was satisfied with how it was.

Nick quietly observed the many different mammals enjoying their day in the park, he never really noticed how cohesive this society was. When you hustle for a living you rarely stop and check your surroundings unless you're in danger, but since Nick was officially out of that business he finally had the chance to stop and soak in his surroundings.

As Nick was lost in thought, a small Fennec fox approached the bench from behind.

"Don't let your guard down too much there, Nick. Someone might jump ya." The Fennec teased in his signature deep voice.

"Well I'll be dammed, if it isn't my favorite son?" Nick smiled as he turned to Finnick.

"Oh shut up, you know how much I hate it when you call me that," Finnick responded with a harsh but playful tone.

"Hey now, that's no way to speak to your father," Nick teased as he sarcastically looked at Finnick.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," Finnick scoffed as he sat next to Nick on the bench. "How've ya been, Nick?"

"Oh you know, the usual. New life and all" Nick sighed. "Still trying to get used to it."

"I can relate," Finnick agreed.

"Wait, are you telling me you're done hustling too?" Nick looked to Finnick in a surprised manner.

"Well for a small mammal such as myself, it's not exactly easy doing that stuff alone," Finnick added. "Plus these days ya can't exactly find a reliable partner overnight, so I decided to find somethin' else to make a livin'."

"Have you found another job already?" Nick asked.

"Yep, workin' at the post office in Sahara Square, can't lie that the government paycheck is pretty nice," Finnick replied with a satisfied look. "Heard you was headin' to the police academy soon, how ya feelin' on that?"

"It's a mixture of emotions, I guess I'm both excited and nervous," Nick acknowledged. "How'd you hear I was leaving soon?"

"You were all the talk on the streets there for a bit," Finnick answered. "Lotsa folk are nervous that you're gonna be a cop, they think you're gonna rat 'em all out when you get in the force, that's actually why I'm here right now."

Nick suddenly realized the situation he had caused on the streets with him becoming a cop, he'd met and known a lot of mammals that frequently engaged in illegal activities over his time on the streets. So it was easy for him to see why so many mammals were uneasy with him becoming a cop.

"Don't worry Finnick, you know that I won't snitch on anyone unless I have a reason to," Nick insisted.

"I know Nick, I trust ya," Finnick sighed. "It's just the others that ain't on the fence, that's why I came to warn ya."

"Warn me?" Nick said perplexed.

"Yeah, before I left I heard some talks about makin' sure you're not gonna snitch," Finnick disclosed as he lowered his voice. "I've done my best already to assure some folk that you weren't gonna say nothin', but that can only go so far."

Uneasiness then washed over Nick. What if they went after mom? What if they went after Judy? Nick was so preoccupied with the sudden thoughts he didn't realize the unease was reflecting on his face.

"Nick, I know what you're thinking," Finnick interrupted Nick's overthinking, "I know they won't go after your mom, you've done a good job keeping where she lives hidden. And they'd be stupid to target Judy, not only is she a cop, but she's also a very well known cop. That kinda publicity, especially for a criminal, is not good."

The reassurance from Finnick helped ease Nick's worries slightly. Finnick was right, Nick had gone through great efforts to keep his mom safe. Plus Judy was a well-known cop, and even if she got into trouble she could handle herself well.

"You're right," Nick sighed a breath of relief, "I just hope nothing happens to them while I'm at the academy."

"How long ya gonna be gone at that anyway?" Finnick asked.

"About six months, give or take," Nick replied.

"Damn, you'll be pretty disconnected for a while then," Finnick remarked as he nodded his head with an impressed look on his face.

"I guess so, according to Judy it's pretty much boot camp for that time," Nick added.

"You've become pretty close with that rabbit, haven't ya?" Finnick pointed out with a sarcastic tone to his voice.

"Well, um, I guess so," Nick stuttered.

"Haha! You do like her!" Finnick shouted as he rolled his head back in laughter, startling a few passersby.

"Wait, Fin, it's not like that dammit!" Nick hissed as he tried to silence the noisy fennec.

Nick's reaction only warranted louder laughter from Finnick, as Nick's sudden nervous demeanor only strengthened Finnick's suspicions.

"My hell, never in my years would I believe Nick Wilde of all Mammals would settle down," Finnick sighed as he wiped a tear of laughter from his eye.

"I'd call it far from settling down," Nick retorted, wanting to defend himself further but knowing it would only cause more pushback from Finnick.

"It's settling down compared to what you used to do," Finnick pointed out. The fennec was one of the few that got to know Nick on a more personal level in the field over the years, this combined with his natural ability to read mammals meant he could read Nick on a more subconscious level.

"Yeah, I suppose that's true," Nick sighed as he looked out into the distance.

"Well Nick, that's about all from me," Finnick interjected Nick's loss in thought, "it was good to see ya, I'm glad you've found your flame in life."

Nick's ears perked up as Finnick began to hop down from the bench.

"Wait, what do you mean by 'flame'?" Nick asked.

"Ya know, your purpose in life, what you truly enjoy doing," Finnick responded, slightly confused, "it's kinda like a slang I guess."

Nick immediately reached for the parchment of paper he kept safely in his pocket, pulling it out he opened it and focused his attention to the last line.

_Seek the ones who paid my flame. _

"Shit! I think I finally figured something out!" Nick yelped as he stuffed the paper back into his pocket, "thanks Fin! I owe ya one!" Nick shouted as he began running towards the police station.

"Uhh, yeah, no problem?" Finnick responded slightly confused as he watched the excited fox run away.

Nick was at the station within 5 minutes, he burst through the doors and ran to the front desk, where a chubby leopard sat entranced in whatever was on his phone.

"Clawhauser!" Nick huffed as he caught himself on the desk, catching his breath.

"You know, I'd suggest working on getting in good cardio shape there Nicky, the first few weeks of the academy aren't gonna be too nice to ya if you don't." Clawhauser teased the winded fox.

"Yeah sure, you're one to talk there buddy," Nick wheezed back at Clawhauser.

"Okay, well I'm not too sure what to say about that one," Clawhauser nodded, accepting the comeback. "What can I do for ya?"

"Where's Judy?" Nick asked, successfully regaining his breath, "I think I just found a clue in something we've been working on."

"Oooooh, a daring new case I see?" Clawhauser smiled, "I believe she's in the office area doing some paperwork."

"Thanks, spots, I appreciate it," Nick smiled back at Clawhauser as he walked to the office area of the station.

Nick immediately spotted the ears of a bunny poking over an office cubicle as he entered the office room and briskly walked over to the space.

"Hey there Carrots," Nick said loudly, startling the bunny entranced in her work.

Judy jumped up from her chair slightly as she yelped in surprise when the fox suddenly appeared

"Don't scare me like that!" Judy chuckled as she clutched her chest, sitting back down.

"My bad, I forget how skittish you bunnies can be," Nick winked.

"What's up slick?" Judy asked, it wasn't often that Nick visited Judy while she was at work, especially when she was doing the boring paperwork aspect of it.

"I think I found a clue in the poem," Nick got straight to the point as he grabbed a chair to sit next to Judy.

"Wait, really?" Judy excitedly asked.

"Yep, I was in conversation with Finnick a few minutes ago and he mentioned that he was glad I was pursuing my 'flame' in life," Nick answered, "apparently it means your purpose or enjoyment that you get out of it. The last line of the poem says to seek those that paid his flame."

Judy's eyes widened as she smacked the side of her head.

"Shoot! Why did I never think of that?" Judy groaned "my dad always said that 'carrot farming was his flame' and that 'mom was his flame' when I was growing up, how did I never put two and two together?"

"Well, sometimes the answers we seek are hiding in plain sight," Nick reassured the frustrated rabbit, placing his paw on her shoulder.

"Yeah, you're right," Judy smiled, "good catch Slick."

"Now for the kicker, what was my dad's flame that he mentions?" Nick pondered.

"Well, if I were to guess if anyone would know it would be your mom," Judy answered.

"Yeah, that would be an obvious place to start," Nick nodded, "but I'm mainly here to ask something."

"Of course! Ask away Slick," Judy responded curiously.

"Well, since I'm leaving for the academy tomorrow and I'm gonna be gone for six months," Nick sighed, "do you think you could hold off on this whole thing until I get back? You can search for as many clues as you please, but I can't shake the feeling that there's something deeper with this, and I'd hate for you to go into something like that alone."

This concern by Nick caught Judy slightly by surprise, something told her he was more concerned for her than he was for his dad.

"Well of course, Slick," Judy responded with a surprised tone, "although I'm a little surprised you're not super concerned to get your dad found."

"Well, as much my mom cares about him, I don't even know the guy," Nick sighed, "plus we don't even know if he's still alive, I feel that aspect of finding him or what happened to him is out of our control at the moment, especially with how little we've solved of this poem."

"That is a good point," Judy nodded, "as much as I would like to find your father, I respect your opinion and what you want, although I'm certainly not gonna stop seeing your sweet mother."

"Ha, I figured she's grown on you." Nick chuckled as he looked at the time, "looks like it's about quitting time for you anyways, mind if I walked you back home?"

"Not at all!" Judy chuckled, finding the chivalry by Nick amusing.

Judy grabbed her personal belongings from her locker and walked with Nick out of the station, as she and Nick walked out of the front are she swore she heard a sound of excitement from Clawhauser, but she paid no mind to it.

The two walked towards Judy's apartment, enjoying the comfortable silence between themselves once again for several minutes.

"How're you feeling about the academy tomorrow?" Judy asked, breaking the silence.

"I'm both excited and nervous, although I figure if you could make it through the academy successfully then I can as well," Nick responded while admiring his surroundings, the evening atmosphere began setting in as the sun slowly set.

"That's a good attitude to have," Judy complimented "you look a lot less nervous than I was the day before I was set to leave."

"Ha, I bet you were a nervous wreck, weren't ya?" Nick teased.

"You know it, I barely got any sleep that night," Judy laughed, "speaking of sleep, please tell me you're not sleeping under that bridge again tonight? Especially since you have a big day tomorrow."

"No worries Carrots, I'm staying with my mom tonight, figured I'd see her one more time before I'm gone for a while," Nick answered, "plus she wouldn't take no for an answer."

Before the two knew it, Judy's apartment complex greeted the two just as the streetlights turned on for the night.

"Welp looks like we're here, it was an honor walking the famous Judy Hopps home for the night," Nick said as he bowed dramatically at Judy.

"And it was an honor being walked home by the Nick Wilde," Judy responded, also bowing sarcastically at Nick.

Judy suddenly enveloped Nick in a strong hug, catching the fox by surprise.

"I'll be at the train station in the morning to say goodbye, but I just wanted to tell you good luck and I'm so proud of you," said Judy, releasing him from the hug.

"Um, well thanks Carrots, I appreciate it," Nick stammered, surprised by the sudden affection by Judy.

"Well, um, see ya tomorrow!" Judy smiled as she walked into the complex.

Nick stood in front of the building for a few minutes processing everything, an array of emotions swirling around in his head. Judy had never shown this much affection towards him.

"_Stop it, Nick, you're overthinking things again," _Nick thought to himself, letting out a content sigh as he began walking to Marion's apartment.

As Nick was about halfway to the complex, he swore he felt like he was being followed. Turning around quickly, Nick thought he saw a figure disappear into an alley far down the road behind him.

"_Strange, must be my mind playing tricks on me like usual," _Nick concluded to himself, continuing his walk as night took over Zootopia.

As Nick walked down the sidewalk, a figure peered out from the alley, sighing a breath of relief that they weren't caught. The figure then turned around and in the opposite direction from Nick, confirming that the fox they saw was the one they were looking for.

* * *

**Hey all, here's Chapter 4! **

**After receiving some advice, I'd like to retract what I said after the last chapter about updating the story once a week. I'd rather not have this story be rushed and muddled due to me worrying about writing a chapter a week, so I'm choosing to take more time with each chapter to ensure that they are what I want them to be and that they're good quality. **

**Quality over quantity! **

**Enjoy,**

**PleasantlyHellinistic**


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